Babysitting

Babysitting refers to caring for a child or children while parents are away, usually for a brief period. There is a long history of babysitting in the United States, with the Saturday Evening Post describing babysitting as a “key industry” in 1948. The importance of babysitting continues—today, with the majority of adolescent girls reporting that babysitting was their first paid job. Parents often hire a babysitter to mind their children in order to allow themselves time to run an errand, carry out work responsibilities, or engage in child-free leisure activities and socializing. From the time babysitting was in its infancy in the 1920s, parents have [Page 167]expressed concerns about the well-being of their children when under the care of a babysitter, and thus, great attention ...